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| True talk Julia, true talk. |
One woman's attempt to win her man's heart through his stomach with no cooking skills and a "What-the-Hell" attitude!
Showing posts with label cooking. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cooking. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Wednesday Wisdom From Julia
"The only real stumbling block is fear of failure. In cooking you've got to have a what-the-hell attitude."
Sunday, April 24, 2011
A Foodie Stumble Through Washington, D.C.
For those of you who live under a rock and could not guess where I was from the out of focus obviously professionally shot photo of me in the mysterious, Plexi-glassed kitchen, I was in the Smithsonian standing in front of Julia Child's Kitchen....and I was squeeing myself.
Julia's Kitchen for those of you who cannot make it there; here is ahigher quality slightly more professional photo tour of its awesomeness.
What was I doing in Washington D.C. you ask? Lobbying for better food labeling, food handling/processing, or clearer marking of genetically modified foods? Sadly no. Instead, I was learning about a doctoral program, seeing the campus, and generally trying not make a fool of myself with the folks that will be deciding what I do for the next 5 years of my life. While Jon and I were there, we decided to take in some sights as well.
The last time I went to D.C. I was not thebumbling fool well-versed culinary genius standing before you today...no wait...that's a lie. I was exactly the same. I just didn't know that I would fall ass-backward into blogging about it at that time. That's why I was not so keen on visiting the kitchen over say...the memorials the last time I was there.
This year, I had exactly 2 things that I wanted to see: Julia Child's Kitchen, and the Jaleo Restaurant. Jaleo was a restaurant I first heard about while watching Iron Chef. Jaleo's Executive Chef, Jose Andres, smacked down my future baby's daddy (and apparent upstairs neighbor), Bobby Flay, during battle goat. When I heard that Andres' restaurant was in D.C., I just had to go. I don't travel to New York or Las Vegas (where Flay and many other challengers have a lot of their restaurants) so I feel like this was one of the few opportunities I would have to eat at Iron Chef quality establishment. More on that later.
This moment is for Julia...
There were quite literally a MILLION people in there trying to see it. I didn't realize that so many people were interested in seeing her kitchen. Getting these three pictures with no one else in them was enough to get about 1,000 piss-faced, hurry-up scowls. That's okay though. This was my moment with Julia. The first thing that struck me was the color of cabinets; Tiffany Blue. My wedding was in Tiffany Blue, the hovel is decorated in Tiffany Blue, I am at one with Tiffany Blue.
The next thing that struck me was how low the stove was. She had the cabinets raised because she was exceptionally tall for a woman. If you do the flash tour linked above, you will notice that it appears a good four inches or so lower than her cabinets. That may not seem like much, but if you are constantly bent over like that, you are going to throw out your back. Here's a picture of it, but it doesn't quite capture the disparity in height. Perhaps that why she had a stool perched there on the other side. So she could sit while she fussed over pots.
Of course, this range was an incredible improvement over her earlier stoves, like the one seen here.
Another thing that struck me, which I guess it shouldn't have being that I was in a museum and all, was how well used everything appeared. The pots and pans were battered and scorched, jars were full with peeling labels, utensil handles were bent. It reminded me of walking into my grandmother's kitchen as a child. It just goes to show you how blinded by media perceptions we (meaning I) really are. When you watch cooking shows on TV you see nothing but brilliant counters with shiny pots, pans, and appliances. See Exhibits A, B, and C below.
Another thing that surprised me is how cluttered and random the kitchen appeared. Again, I shouldn't be because Julia actually lived and cooked in that kitchen, putting things in places that were convenient for her regular use. Not like today's TV chefs that have everything symmetrical and neatly stacked/contained. (Review the above if you don't believe me).
Julia really loved knives, but she did not own a knife block. I thought that was interesting. She instead chose to have her knives within easy reach on a magnetic strip. Julia Child was, in fact, childless. Good thing though, so she did not have to worry about any emo neighbor kids getting ahold of her knife collection. Just an interesting observation.
One thing she thought every cook should have was a mortar and pestle. Don't ask me why. I'd probably just end up dropping it on my foot or something, but here is hers.
Another, more surprising, component of the exhibit talked about how Julia didn't start cooking until later in life. And, like myself, she was not always successful. I think it was quintessential Julia to want to teach others and show that she had lots of obstacles to overcome to achieve what she did. It makes one feel almost as if she were your friend instead of some soulless celebrity cook.
What touched me the most about the exhibit was the obvious love between Julia and Paul. It was thick in the air like a peppered, white gravy. So much love passed in that kitchen, and as you can read from the picture above, she admitted that there would be no "French Chef" without her beloved Paul. I would not be "The Project" without my beloved Jon, either.
It was a great experience and I found myself welling up with tears as we walked out. The exhibit moved me, and I can't tell you why. It was like being at a celebration of life for a recently departed friend. It's exactly the same way I felt when I watched the end of Julie and Julia, the movie. You see the Smithsonian kitchen kind of fade into the the actual kitchen, with Julia cooking away and Paul coming in with a package that turns out to be Julia's first published cookbook. Julia has changed the lives and inspired many servantless, American cooks like myself. I was just lucky enough to see a small glimpse into her every day life.
Julia's Kitchen for those of you who cannot make it there; here is a
What was I doing in Washington D.C. you ask? Lobbying for better food labeling, food handling/processing, or clearer marking of genetically modified foods? Sadly no. Instead, I was learning about a doctoral program, seeing the campus, and generally trying not make a fool of myself with the folks that will be deciding what I do for the next 5 years of my life. While Jon and I were there, we decided to take in some sights as well.
The last time I went to D.C. I was not the
This year, I had exactly 2 things that I wanted to see: Julia Child's Kitchen, and the Jaleo Restaurant. Jaleo was a restaurant I first heard about while watching Iron Chef. Jaleo's Executive Chef, Jose Andres, smacked down my future baby's daddy (and apparent upstairs neighbor), Bobby Flay, during battle goat. When I heard that Andres' restaurant was in D.C., I just had to go. I don't travel to New York or Las Vegas (where Flay and many other challengers have a lot of their restaurants) so I feel like this was one of the few opportunities I would have to eat at Iron Chef quality establishment. More on that later.
This moment is for Julia...
 |
| It's too bad it's behind greasy, smudged Plexi-glass. |
 |
| Me: "How's the picture look?" Jon: "Great! Totally in focus and everything!" |
 | |
Notice the clock says 12:20. It is always lunch time in Julia's kitchen. |
There were quite literally a MILLION people in there trying to see it. I didn't realize that so many people were interested in seeing her kitchen. Getting these three pictures with no one else in them was enough to get about 1,000 piss-faced, hurry-up scowls. That's okay though. This was my moment with Julia. The first thing that struck me was the color of cabinets; Tiffany Blue. My wedding was in Tiffany Blue, the hovel is decorated in Tiffany Blue, I am at one with Tiffany Blue.
 |
| Tiffany Blue is the worst color to try to match for weddings, just fyi. If you are a perfectionist bride, choose another color for the love of God or you will be bald from stress and broke because you practically have to custom dye everything. |
The next thing that struck me was how low the stove was. She had the cabinets raised because she was exceptionally tall for a woman. If you do the flash tour linked above, you will notice that it appears a good four inches or so lower than her cabinets. That may not seem like much, but if you are constantly bent over like that, you are going to throw out your back. Here's a picture of it, but it doesn't quite capture the disparity in height. Perhaps that why she had a stool perched there on the other side. So she could sit while she fussed over pots.
 |
| (C) Jeff Kubina |
Another thing that struck me, which I guess it shouldn't have being that I was in a museum and all, was how well used everything appeared. The pots and pans were battered and scorched, jars were full with peeling labels, utensil handles were bent. It reminded me of walking into my grandmother's kitchen as a child. It just goes to show you how blinded by media perceptions we (meaning I) really are. When you watch cooking shows on TV you see nothing but brilliant counters with shiny pots, pans, and appliances. See Exhibits A, B, and C below.
 | |
| Still too exited to be talking about radishes, Rach. Image (C) CelebPulp |
 | |
| Chef Anne, I hate to categorize you in the same universe with R.R., but when you say, "big meat" you scare me a little and make me think dirty thoughts. I hope this does not affect our potential future BFF-ness (Image probably (c) of Food Network) |
 |
| The Anti-Christ. No explanation required. Image found here. |
Another thing that surprised me is how cluttered and random the kitchen appeared. Again, I shouldn't be because Julia actually lived and cooked in that kitchen, putting things in places that were convenient for her regular use. Not like today's TV chefs that have everything symmetrical and neatly stacked/contained. (Review the above if you don't believe me).
Julia really loved knives, but she did not own a knife block. I thought that was interesting. She instead chose to have her knives within easy reach on a magnetic strip. Julia Child was, in fact, childless. Good thing though, so she did not have to worry about any emo neighbor kids getting ahold of her knife collection. Just an interesting observation.
 |
| Go cry somewhere else emo kid. |
One thing she thought every cook should have was a mortar and pestle. Don't ask me why. I'd probably just end up dropping it on my foot or something, but here is hers.
 | ||
| "An Essential Kitchen Tool" |
Another, more surprising, component of the exhibit talked about how Julia didn't start cooking until later in life. And, like myself, she was not always successful. I think it was quintessential Julia to want to teach others and show that she had lots of obstacles to overcome to achieve what she did. It makes one feel almost as if she were your friend instead of some soulless celebrity cook.
 |
| I am not alone. |
It was a great experience and I found myself welling up with tears as we walked out. The exhibit moved me, and I can't tell you why. It was like being at a celebration of life for a recently departed friend. It's exactly the same way I felt when I watched the end of Julie and Julia, the movie. You see the Smithsonian kitchen kind of fade into the the actual kitchen, with Julia cooking away and Paul coming in with a package that turns out to be Julia's first published cookbook. Julia has changed the lives and inspired many servantless, American cooks like myself. I was just lucky enough to see a small glimpse into her every day life.
 |
| Thank you Julia, for everything. |
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Rotten Bananas: Take 2
We buy an awful lot of bananas around this joint, and dammit if they don't go bad before we get a chance to use them. I think I've Banana Breaded out everyone, so I thought perhaps a banana pudding would be a better way to go this time. I know it's almost foolishly simple to list how to make it here, but there are some people who cook so bad, they may need my assistance in getting it right. So, here we go.
Ingredients
1 box of instant vanilla pudding
2-4 medium sized bananas that are as spotty as a Las Vegas Grandma's forearms, chopped into small discs
1 box of Nilla Wafers Cookies
2 cups of cold milk
In a bowl, whisk together the instant pudding and the 2 cups of milk. It will soft set in about 3 to 5 minutes of whisking. When it soft sets, put it in the fridge to chill.
Next find you a good casserole dish or a large bowl to make make the final product in. You can get all Polly Perfect on it and make concentric circles of wafers and thin banana slices if you like. I, on the other hand, just made a bottom crust of cookies, the slapped a good mess of naners on top of those.
Then, you will need to add your chilled pudding. You can do a thin layer, then add some more bananas, wafers and more pudding. Or, you can just dump in your pudding like me. No appreciates your artistry here.
After that, you can add a nice layer of bananas and wafers to the top portion. I like to crumble a few for texture and prettiness. You don't have to. You can be all pirate's treasure on yours and trick your guests into thinking they are just eating plain pudding until they chomp into some mystery item. Is it banana, cookie, or toe nail? Only you will know the truth and you can giggle menacingly at their psychological torture. BWAHAHAHAHA!
Ingredients
1 box of instant vanilla pudding
2-4 medium sized bananas that are as spotty as a Las Vegas Grandma's forearms, chopped into small discs
1 box of Nilla Wafers Cookies
2 cups of cold milk
In a bowl, whisk together the instant pudding and the 2 cups of milk. It will soft set in about 3 to 5 minutes of whisking. When it soft sets, put it in the fridge to chill.
Next find you a good casserole dish or a large bowl to make make the final product in. You can get all Polly Perfect on it and make concentric circles of wafers and thin banana slices if you like. I, on the other hand, just made a bottom crust of cookies, the slapped a good mess of naners on top of those.
 |
| Fuck Polly Perfect |
After that, you can add a nice layer of bananas and wafers to the top portion. I like to crumble a few for texture and prettiness. You don't have to. You can be all pirate's treasure on yours and trick your guests into thinking they are just eating plain pudding until they chomp into some mystery item. Is it banana, cookie, or toe nail? Only you will know the truth and you can giggle menacingly at their psychological torture. BWAHAHAHAHA!
 |
| On Nom |
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Friday, March 4, 2011
Kick Ass Shepherd's Pie
Hey guys! I am so excited to tell you about this recipe and how I pulled it off flawlessly by "thinking like a chef" and bypassing some goof-ups I made early on and turning out an excellent meal.
I am proud to say even the leftovers are now gone, which says a lot in this house. Jon was very sweet with his compliments: "This is so good that not only would I eat it again if you made it, I would feed it to other people." That's my man, forever the charmer.
Let's rock out some Shepherd's Pie, kids!
First things first, Shepherd's Pie is traditionally made with ground lamb or cubed lamb shoulder. Not only is mutton a little difficult and pricey to get our hands on here in Houston, we aren't the biggest lamb eaters. Instead, I used ground beef. It was magnificent. I imagine if you want to use beef stew meat diced into very small cubes (like 1/4") you could use that as well.
I made my Shepard's Pie off of Chef Anne Burrell's Shepherd's Pie. If you want her recipe, click her name. How I made mine is listed below:
- Olive oil, as needed
- 1 pound ground beef
- Salt
- 3-4 heaping Tablespoons of flour
- 1-2 ribs celery, cut into 1/4-inch dice
- 3 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice
- 1 quarter to 1/2 of a large onion
- 2 cloves garlic, smashed and finely chopped. (Garlic powder got me through because I just ran out of fresh)
- 1/4 cup tomato sauce
- 1/2 cup red wine
- 3 to 4 cups chicken stock
- 1 fat pinch of thyme
- 2 pounds potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch dices
- 3/4 to 1 cup milk (warm if you have the time)
- 2 to 3 tablespoons butter
- 1/2-1 cup frozen peas
Haha. I just said doodoo. *crickets* Ahem, moving on.
I also didn't have fresh thyme, so I think like a chef and improvise. I used a pinch of the dry stuff instead. As far as the tomato paste goes, thought I had it but I didn't. It was tomato sauce. I used a quarter cup of it instead and slipped the remainder into a half used jar of pasta sauce that was hiding out in the fridge. No one was the wiser.
Enough stalling, let's get to the heavy lifting.
Distructions:
Coat a wide pan, like a sauce pan, with olive oil and bring to a medium-high heat. Season the beef with salt and toss with the flour. Add the beef to the pan and brown well. Remove the beef from the pan and reserve in a bowl you have lying around. Ditch the oil in the pan and add a splash new olive oil.
Add the celery, carrots, and onion to the pan. Season the mixture with salt and cook, stirring frequently until the vegetables are soft and very aromatic, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 2 to 3 minutes more. Add the beef back to the pan and stir to combine.
Add the tomato sauce and cook until the tomato sauce starts to brown, about 2 to 3 minutes. Then, add the wine and cook until it reduces by half.
Add enough stock to just cover the surface of the beef mixture. Taste and season with salt and pepper, if needed. Sprinkle in the thyme. Bring the stock to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Partially cover and simmer for at least 30 minutes to an hour, or until the kids start complaining that they are starving. If you are using the stew meat, you will need to continue cooking until the meat is tender. When the stock level reduces replace with more to keep the meat just submerged.
In the mean time, we have to make the mashed potato topping. Place the potatoes in a medium saucepan and cover by 1-inch with tap water. Season the water with salt and bring the water to a boil. Boil the potatoes until they are fork tender, about 15 minutes. Drain the water from the potatoes They don't have to be soupy or super creamy. They need a little heft to them to stay on the top of the pie and form a hardy "crust". Get one of the kids to mash them with a hand tool or mixer while slowly adding the butter and milk. Taste and season with salt, if needed.
Remove the lid from the beef and add the peas. Simmer for 15 minutes more to allow the stock level to reduce. Taste and adjust the seasoning, if needed. When done, the beef mixture should be thick and stew-like. Not soupy.
Preheat the broiler.
Transfer the beef mixture to a wide, flat baking dish like a Corningware dish. Spread the mashed potatoes over the beef mixture in an even layer.
Place the baking dish under the preheated broiler. Broil until the potatoes are golden brown and crispy. Don't walk off! This only takes a few minutes and if you aren't paying attention, they will burn. If you are as truly awesome, your dish will come out like this:
Enjoy!
Add the celery, carrots, and onion to the pan. Season the mixture with salt and cook, stirring frequently until the vegetables are soft and very aromatic, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 2 to 3 minutes more. Add the beef back to the pan and stir to combine.
Add the tomato sauce and cook until the tomato sauce starts to brown, about 2 to 3 minutes. Then, add the wine and cook until it reduces by half.
 |
| I love cooking with wine. Sometimes it actually makes it into the dish. |
Add enough stock to just cover the surface of the beef mixture. Taste and season with salt and pepper, if needed. Sprinkle in the thyme. Bring the stock to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Partially cover and simmer for at least 30 minutes to an hour, or until the kids start complaining that they are starving. If you are using the stew meat, you will need to continue cooking until the meat is tender. When the stock level reduces replace with more to keep the meat just submerged.
In the mean time, we have to make the mashed potato topping. Place the potatoes in a medium saucepan and cover by 1-inch with tap water. Season the water with salt and bring the water to a boil. Boil the potatoes until they are fork tender, about 15 minutes. Drain the water from the potatoes They don't have to be soupy or super creamy. They need a little heft to them to stay on the top of the pie and form a hardy "crust". Get one of the kids to mash them with a hand tool or mixer while slowly adding the butter and milk. Taste and season with salt, if needed.
Remove the lid from the beef and add the peas. Simmer for 15 minutes more to allow the stock level to reduce. Taste and adjust the seasoning, if needed. When done, the beef mixture should be thick and stew-like. Not soupy.
Preheat the broiler.
Transfer the beef mixture to a wide, flat baking dish like a Corningware dish. Spread the mashed potatoes over the beef mixture in an even layer.
 |
| Just like this... |
Place the baking dish under the preheated broiler. Broil until the potatoes are golden brown and crispy. Don't walk off! This only takes a few minutes and if you aren't paying attention, they will burn. If you are as truly awesome, your dish will come out like this:
 |
| Okay, not very pretty, but damn tasty. |
Monday, February 28, 2011
One Day, Two FAILS
Dear Bleaders,
Today was an especially sad day in Kersten Kolache Land. Here's the skinny:
I was chatting it up with my mother and she suddenly gets this tentative, hesitant tone in her voice.
Ma: "Hey, sweetie. Everything goin' okay there at the house..?"
Me: "Um, yea. Why?"
Ma: "Are you still cooking for that blog thing?"
Me: "Yea, I just getting back on the wagon. February was just sort of a tough month. Why?"
Ma: "Well...that picture you put up of the kitchen, and I was just wondering...um...is it really that messy?
Me: "Really, Ma? You think that I would let my kitchen get that bad?"
Ma: *Apologetic* "Well, no, I mean, I just, it seems like you were having a tough time and I didn't think you had yellow counter tops any way. I just saw that and I was just not sure. I'm glad everything's alright.
Me: ...
Fail #2:
I would like to start by giving a salute to all of you who are already followers. Thank you for your support. Also, a special thanks to all those who are out there Tweeting, Facebooking and Stumbling my story to the masses. (I celebrate every with a squee and run all euphoric about the house when a new person joins.)
Like you, I am trying to get the word out about generally awesome my blog is. However, there are some haters. I got this lovely diddy from a dude from my very own hometown of Houston.
I have also been submitting blogrolls with marginal success. Today, however, I was summarily rejected from a cooking blogroll because it was stated that my blog, "was not about cooking." I was completely shattered of course, because I would like to think 95% of my blog is about cooking. I cried a little and vowed to chronicle more of my actual cooking.
Until I can get up to that magical 101% of my blog being devoted to listing out a recipe with explicit directions on how to prepare it in a dry, regimented manner, please continue to use social networking to tell my tale. I'm counting on you to get the message out there and prove that indeed, more people have read my blog than that guy's shirt. Namaste! Good karma be with you.
Today was an especially sad day in Kersten Kolache Land. Here's the skinny:
I was chatting it up with my mother and she suddenly gets this tentative, hesitant tone in her voice.
Ma: "Hey, sweetie. Everything goin' okay there at the house..?"
Me: "Um, yea. Why?"
Ma: "Are you still cooking for that blog thing?"
Me: "Yea, I just getting back on the wagon. February was just sort of a tough month. Why?"
Ma: "Well...that picture you put up of the kitchen, and I was just wondering...um...is it really that messy?
Me: "Really, Ma? You think that I would let my kitchen get that bad?"
Ma: *Apologetic* "Well, no, I mean, I just, it seems like you were having a tough time and I didn't think you had yellow counter tops any way. I just saw that and I was just not sure. I'm glad everything's alright.
Me: ...
Fail #2:
I would like to start by giving a salute to all of you who are already followers. Thank you for your support. Also, a special thanks to all those who are out there Tweeting, Facebooking and Stumbling my story to the masses. (I celebrate every with a squee and run all euphoric about the house when a new person joins.)
Like you, I am trying to get the word out about generally awesome my blog is. However, there are some haters. I got this lovely diddy from a dude from my very own hometown of Houston.
 | |||
Consequently, I found a song about this very guy! What a lucky rabbit I am!
I thought you would like to hear it. (Sorta NSFW)
I have also been submitting blogrolls with marginal success. Today, however, I was summarily rejected from a cooking blogroll because it was stated that my blog, "was not about cooking." I was completely shattered of course, because I would like to think 95% of my blog is about cooking. I cried a little and vowed to chronicle more of my actual cooking.
Until I can get up to that magical 101% of my blog being devoted to listing out a recipe with explicit directions on how to prepare it in a dry, regimented manner, please continue to use social networking to tell my tale. I'm counting on you to get the message out there and prove that indeed, more people have read my blog than that guy's shirt. Namaste! Good karma be with you.
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